Tom和Vivian是香港一家跨國(guó)公司的雇員。Vivian被升職,要調(diào)到美國(guó)奧蘭多的辦事處。她知道Tom是從芝加哥調(diào)到香港來(lái)的,所以向Tom征求意見(jiàn)。Tom談到利弊時(shí)說(shuō):
T: On a financial note, you'll probably be able to save a lot more of your salary and have more disposable income, as rents and living costs in that area are reasonable.
V: Yes. From a financial standpoint relocating makes sense, but I just want to make sure I'm not shooting myself in the foot. Happiness is important, right?
Tom說(shuō),要說(shuō)錢(qián),奧蘭多房租、生活費(fèi)用很合理,reasonable, 所以Vivian會(huì)有更多可支配的收入,disposable income.
Vivian表示,如果光看錢(qián),去奧蘭多確實(shí)很合適,make sense, 但是她不愿意搬起石頭砸自己的腳,I just want to make sure I'm not shooting myself in the foot. 因?yàn)殚_(kāi)心還是很重要的。
T: Oh, absolutely. But Florida is a beautiful state with a nice climate. You'll be able to enjoy the beaches and take vacations in Miami!
V: Sounds good. It's just such a hard decision for me. I want to branch out and spread my wings, but there's so many "unknowns."
Vivian說(shuō),她想擴(kuò)大發(fā)展,展開(kāi)雙臂,branch out and spread my wings, 但是又有太多的未知數(shù),Unknowns.
T: Yeah, I also had mixed emotions when they first offered me this job. But I have a favorite quote by the poet John Berryman that helped me a lot.
V: Which is?
T: "We must travel in the direction of our fear."
V: That's a great quotation. So let's say I'm leaning towards relocating. Got any practical tips?
Tom用詩(shī)人John Berryman的一句話鼓勵(lì) Vivian. "We must travel in the direction of our fear." 我們必須要面對(duì)恐懼前行。Tom還有哪些建議呢?
T: Yeah...do your homework. Get online and research where you're going. Learn about the history, geography, climate...etc. Then when you get there, you'll feel like you already know the place a bit.
V: How long did it take you to settle into your new environment?
T: I have to be honest. For the first 3 months I was pretty unhappy. I didn't like the food, couldn't figure out the subway system and, for me, Hong Kong is a noisy place. But after the four month-mark, I began to feel much better.
Do your homework? 這是英語(yǔ)里很常用的一種說(shuō)法,意思是事先準(zhǔn)備。Tom建議Vivian去了解一下奧蘭多的情況。 Tom還說(shuō),他剛來(lái)香港的時(shí)候,也很不習(xí)慣。你記得他是什么時(shí)候開(kāi)始適應(yīng)的嗎?沒(méi)錯(cuò),四個(gè)月。
V: Now how does it feel? You've been here for a full year, right?
T: My one-year anniversary is next week, and I have to say, I've never been happier.
V: Thanks for sharing your experiences with me, Tom. I really appreciate it. You helped me clarify my own feelings.
T: Glad to be of help. Don't forget to invite me to your going away party!
V: I won't!
Vivian謝謝Tom幫忙,Tom說(shuō),不要忘記請(qǐng)我參加你的going away party臨行聚會(huì)。